WhatsApp urges users to update following cyber attack

WhatsApp has urged users to update to the latest version of the app after finding that hackers have been able to exploit a vulnerability and install surveillance software through the messaging app.

The developers of the app, which has 1.5bn users around the world, said that a cyber attack had targeted a "select number" of users and was orchestrated by "an advanced cyber actor", with the Financial Times reporting that the spyware was developed by the Israeli cyber intelligence company NSO Group.

The update fix has been available since Friday and was assembled after developers discovered the attack earlier this month.

WhatsApp is promoted as a 'secure' messaging application as text communication through the platform is end-to-end encrypted, but the cyber attack's compromising of this feature may scare some users away.

A statement from NSO said: "NSO's technology is licensed to authorised government agencies for the sole purpose of fighting crime and terror. The company does not operate the system, and after a rigorous licensing and vetting process, intelligence and law enforcement determine how to use the technology to support their public safety missions. We investigate any credible allegations of misuse and if necessary, we take action, including shutting down the system."

The news comes on the same day that a Tel Aviv court will hear a petition led by Amnesty International that calls for the revocation of NSO Group's licence to export its products, with the non-governmental organisation claiming to have been targeted using the company's tools in the past.